Hansel and Gretel, Twisted and Contorted
by xXOllie-laXx
Summary: What if Hansel and Gretel were two gay males and not thrown out by an evil stepmother but a group of angry townspeople? social commentary as fractured fairytale . Boylove, some Language, violence and themes


**Note: I do not own the tale of Hasel and Gretel this is just a take on it that I submitted as an English assignment. Rated M for boy love, some language and some violence. Please don't read on if you don't like it.**

**Hansel and Gretel, Twisted and Contorted.**

Once upon a time, in a kingdom not too different from yours and a time not so far from the present, there lived two young men. These two boys, the eldest Hansel and the youngest Gretel, shared something special. 'Twas more important than both their house and their friendship. It was the most hidden and scared of secrets. Love. They shared a love but could never express it. They could never hold hands nor kiss in public in fear of being discovered. Their special bond was frowned upon by the townsfolk of the kingdom and the ruler of the land had even made a declaration sent to every home by a messenger,

**'Any man found in a blasphemous relationship with another man will be hung for sins against God.**

**As decreed by His royal highness, King Fredrick V.'**

And, so, Hansel and Gretel were reduced to secret touches in dark places and faux indifference.

Many times Hansel and Gretel had considered running away, going somewhere where they would be accepted but talk was cheap and they were set up and secure in their little routine. Each day Hansel would rush to work, Gretel would scamper to university. Hansel would slave away through the scorching heat and teeth-chattering cold while Gretel sifted through the piles of monotony known as research and notes. At the end of the day Hansel would be invited to drink with the boys, an offer he always turned down and he was always met with the same response,

"If I didn't know any better I would swear you and that kid were a pair of fucking fairies."

To which Hansel replied, "I'm only looking after him until he can stand on his own two feet."

At the end of the day Gretel would politely decline any offers made by friends, producing the same consistent excuse, "I need to study. I do have a scholarship to keep after all."

They would come home to each other, tired and craving the others company. With the curtains drawn and the lights dimmed they would make love until they fell asleep in each others arms, each breathing in the proximity of the other.

As time passed both Hansel and Gretel became careless, convinced that the people of the kingdom were too stupid or too uncaring to uncover their love. Their recklessness was apparent too. They no longer hid in the confinement of their warm and safe little home, in fact one night, in a drunken haze, Gretel even dared to allow his hand to creep up Hansel's thigh before having his hand pushed away by the older man with a nearly silent hiss, "What in the hell do you think you are doing?"

Their fatal mistake was just that, a mistake. One stupid, careless and idiotic mistake that led to a fate far worse than the proposed hanging Hansel and Gretel feared. A night after their typical daily routine Hansel and Gretel came home to each other as usual, tired and each needing the other. In the heat of the moment they disregarded a precaution that had aided in them keeping their secret. They let themselves act upon the days urges completely unaware of the uncovered windows and the looks from the townsfolk as they gathered.

The sun streamed through the open window illuminating the two men's faces. Hansel groaned and rolled over but Gretel let his eyes slowly open, the sunshine was lovely… He sat straight up with a sudden jolt.

_Sunshine?_ Gretel thought, squinting his eyes at the harsh morning light, _Since when do we wake up to sunshine?_

There was a loud crash and shattered glass from the window showered both of the boys, Hansel moving quickly and instinctively wrapped his arms the younger boy in an attempt to protect him from the sharp, glinting shards. From the outside they heard what could only be described as a hellish chorus chanting a single word over and over and over again.

faggots.

Faggots.

Faggots!

FAGGOTS!

Hansel pressed his back to the wall, craning his neck to look out a window, dodging when a black object flew at the glass sending even more glittering pieces scattering throughout their bedroom. Hansel could see people, maybe a hundred of them, gathered outside of the house. People from his work, people from Gretel's school, people they thought were friends all gathered shouting hateful obscenities at the pair.

Hansel reached for Gretel, speaking with absolute caution, "Run. Use the back door and run to the forest behind. I will gather some clothes and some food and I will come and find you. Just stay safe, please!"

With that Gretel gave Hansel's hand a final hard squeeze and ran to the door, ignoring the glass that was digging into his feet and staining the carpet with blood.

The forest behind their house was dense and dark, but even when Gretel had buried himself in the depths he could still hear the angry shouts of the townsfolk.

"_FAGGOTS WILL BURN IN HELL!"_

"_YOU AND YOUR KIND SHOULD BE HUNG!"_

"_GOD WILL NOT SEE PAST YOUR SIN!"_

Gretel felt tears start to burn his eyes. What if something had happened to Hansel? What if he never saw him again? He buried his face in his hands and let his fearful tears run down him grimy face. Somewhere near Gretel could hear a rustling, he could see a silhouette. He moved quickly looking for somewhere to hide before being stopped with a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Gretel, Gretel, calm down. It is me." came Hansel's familiar voice.

Hansel hadn't brought much in his haste. Two pairs of shoes, a days worth of clean clothes and some stale bread was all that he could muster before the mob had managed to break down his door and he was forced to flee. But he had managed to save the most valuable thing in his life and that was all that mattered.

They walked through the forest for days, lost and hungry. They had eaten the last of their bread and Hansel was regretting it because now they were lost and did not have even a measly trail of breadcrumbs to follow. Gretel had collapsed from exhaustion more than once and Hansel was forced to carry the young man just to keep moving. Hope began to diminish and faith, or what little they held with their apparent God before being caught out, had disappeared. They had begun to think that maybe, just maybe, they would be stuck in the depths forever and not even a travelling woodcutter would look twice if he came across their bodies. But Hansel found out that hope worked when all of it was all but lost. Whilst walking with a sleeping Gretel in his arms he spotted something most peculiar. A house, no, a cottage stood not 150 yards away from them. It looked almost like a gingerbread house from a nearly forgotten story he had heard when he was a child. He woke Gretel, excited that they had finally found safety and maybe rescue. Gretel held tightly to Hansel's hand and softly kissed him as they walked to the house, not paying attention to the elderly woman watching them. Hansel had long since forgotten that the kind of people who lived in gingerbread houses were not the type to offer kindness.

The woman inside the gingerbread house kindly let the boys inside her home, offering all the luxuries that they had been without. Warm food, a hot bath and clean clothes sounded absolutely heavenly and Hansel and Gretel accepted without delay, letting themselves be lulled into a false sense of security. Little did they know they were not being charmed by an innocent elderly woman, deep inside she had a heart as black as coal and a soul that would be better suited to the devil but she believed she was, in fact, as pure as God. There was no shade of gray in her eyes, only black and white, good and evil and what she had seen from her window had been the deepest of sins, the darkest shade of black. As they entered her home she beat the both of them over the head with a heated frying pan, both boys falling to the floor with a loud thud.

When they came to, bleary eyed and in pain, they found themselves bound together in thick rope restraints. Gretel tried to speak but the only sound that escaped his mouth was a pained whimper. The falsely kind woman stood over Hansel and Gretel, knife glinting menacingly. She put it to Gretel's throat as Hansel struggled in a last ditch attempt to save him.

"There is no happily ever after for people like you. When you arrive at heavens gates, you will tossed into the fiery pit. God will be your salvation." She said, running the knife along Gretel's throat.

Hansel fought against his bounds but it was too late. Gretel had been reduced to a blood-stained, lifeless heap beside him and he felt the woman's knife begin to burn his skin. His vision turned red and slowly dissolved to black as he faded away into oblivion knowing that at least he would spend eternity with his dear Gretel.

**AN: Just as a random side note I got a B+ for the assignment YAY FOR ME! **


End file.
